The present invention is in the technical field of vehicles. More particularly, the present invention is in the technical field of mounting an engine or propulsion unit.
The following is a tabulation of some prior art that presently appears relevant:
U.S. PatentsPat. No.Kind CodeIssue DatePatenteeU.S. Pat. No. 2,953,336248/605, 248/613Sep. 20, 1960Eugene B. EtchellsU.S. Pat. No. 3,219,138180/57, 180/380, 180/292Nov. 23, 1965Floyd R. KishlineU.S. Pat. No. 3,841,426180/53.1, 180/291, 248/659Oct. 15, 1974Mark S. NemschoffU.S. Pat. No. 4,467,992248/659, 180/300Aug. 28, 1984Hiroaki Morimura et al.
There are many reasons a customer may want to replace the engine in his vehicle with a different engine. This, however, presents a problem as different makes and model of engine are mounted in various positions within the vehicle's engine compartment and with different types of fastening hardware. Additionally, the location and design of the replacement engine may cause further problems in terms of fully integrating the engine with other vehicle systems. While each engine “swap” is unique and presents its own integration problems, common areas of concern are the mechanical linkage from the engine's driveshaft to the drive-wheels of the vehicle, connection to the exhaust and air intake systems, and integration of hydraulic and electrical systems.
As each swap scenario is unique, these problems had previously been solved with unique solutions. Many hours of measurement, design, fabrication, and other work may be spent on a single swap. Often, the product of all this labor is only useful in the one scenario for which the swap was performed. This means any particular engine swap project may even be customized to the point of being a lone example in the field. Given the amount of skill, time, and creativity necessary to produce these customized solutions, it is not surprising that an engine swap is usually an expensive proposition.
Still, the popularity of engine swaps has led some manufacturers to produce kits that contain the necessary hardware to complete an engine swap. A typical kit contains many types of hardware including metal brackets, bushings, wiring harnesses, nuts, bolts, washers, as well as a “mount” that acts as the mechanical fastening point between the engine and the body or frame of the vehicle. The design of these kits is dictated by the choice of engine to be swapped and the choice vehicle to receive that engine.
Again, given the unique nature of each engine swap, a kit is usually only useful for a particular engine to be swapped into a particular model of vehicle (though often spanning some model years).
Known motor mount designs in patent publications are similar to these manufactured kits in that they do not recognize the need to accommodate more than one series of engine design. In fact, U.S. Pat. No. 2,953,336 to E. B. Etchells refers to a singular series stating, “Although engine and transmission assemblies of different designs will have different characteristics, a series of identical assemblies will have substantially identical characteristics, so that identical mountings may be used for all assemblies in the series.” Etchells recognizes a benefit of using identical mountings, but does not recognize the need to accommodate more than one series of engine design. Similarly, the designs in U.S. Pat. No. 3,219,138 to Floyd R. Kishline, U.S. Pat. No. 4,467,992 to Hiroaki Morimura et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 3,841,426 to Mark S. Nemschoff primarily address common problems such as carrying engine loads and isolating vibrations, but none address the need to accommodate more than one series of engine design.